Tag Archives: Disneyland

We’re Back!

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It seems that it has been quite a “dry spell” since our last post.  We have had a lot going on that took time away from normal trips to a Disney park.

Savannah Linn

We welcomed our newest “Princess” into our family last fall.  Savannah Linn was born on September 8 in California.  Shortly thereafter, we helped her mom and dad move cross country to the east coast and helped them get resettled into their new home and life.  Then came the holidays and time with family.

So finally, 2018 has arrived and life is returning to “normal,” or something that resembles it; and we find ourselves back at Walt Disney World.

So much is going on this spring at Walt Disney World with the Epcot International Festival of the Arts; and it will be quickly replaced by the International Flower and Garden Festival on February 28th.  We will have new experiences, visit new lands and savor new foods which we will certainly tell you about and give you ideas for your next Disney adventure.

If all goes as planned, we will be back in Disneyland in May before we head east again and start our training to run the Wine and Dine 10K in November – our first in almost 3 years.

So bear with us and keep checking for updates and information!

Halloween at Disneyland!

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The Disneyland Resort has gone all out this year in bringing Halloween to the California Adventure Park, even giving it a new name: “Haul-O-ween!”

Entrance to Disney’s California Adventure

In addition to the usual decorations in Disneyland, the imagineers have expanded on the experience by adding elements and designs to its sister park.  This is the first year they have decorated this park so extensively.  Most of the decoration is in Cars Land with Mater and the gang getting in on the action, but Buena Vista Street gets into the festivities as well as the Carthay Circle Restaurant and the corner of Buena Vista and Hollywood Boulevard with the Headless Horseman.

And around both parks you will find Continue Reading →

We Wants The Redhead!

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Disney has announced that there will soon be a significant change to the beloved “Pirates of the Caribbean” attraction.  Sometime in 2018, the most iconic scene “Auction, Take a Wench for a Bride” will be redesigned to a new one which depicts the Redhead as part of an auction crew where they want you to “surrender yer loot.”

“We wants the redhead” will soon no longer ring out across the river.

Even though Walt said Disneyland would never be complete as long as there is imagination, there are many who are upset with this change as it appears that it is being done for “politically correct” purposes.  The auction scene as it currently stands has been in existence since the attraction’s inception, even surviving the changes that took place in the late ’90’s where some of the scenes depicting pirates chasing women were changed to imply the men are now chasing food.

Some changes have been Continue Reading →

Tour of Mark Twain Riverboat

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The last stop on our tours from our trip in February was a guided tour of the Mark Twain Riverboat sitting still on the Rivers of America in Disneyland.  For a little more than a year, the Mark Twain has been sitting dockside in Frontier Land while the Rivers of America was undergoing a reroute to make room for the new Star Wars Land.

The Disneyland Mark Twain Steam Paddle-wheeler.

It is one of the few remaining attractions that was a part of the opening day in 1955, and has fascinating past.  The paddle-wheeled steam boat is a 5/8 scale replica of actual steamers on the Mississippi river.  The hull was built at the shipyards in San Pedro and the decks were built at WED (Walt Elias Disney) Enterprises in Burbank.  The 105 foot boat was assembled at Disneyland and was operational on opening day.  When corporate funds fell short, Walt funded the completion from his own pocket.

While the boat is in “drydock,” guests can Continue Reading →

Which Is Better – Enchanted Tiki Room DL or WDW?

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Welcome to Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room!

This unique attraction was designed to be a restaurant, the original “Enchanted Tiki Room,” at Disneyland is where for more than 50 years Jose, Michael, Pierre and Fritz have been entertaining guests with their familiar “In the tiki tiki tiki tiki tiki room…”

When the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World opened in 1971, it had its own version of the Enchanted Tiki Room (originally called the Tropical Serenade).  The Enchanted Tiki Room in the Magic Continue Reading →

Which Is Better – Pirates of the Caribbean DL or WDW?

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“Pirates” at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party

Since this week marks the 50th anniversary of Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean, we thought we would pose the question of “which is better,” to see if there is an answer. A favorite attraction among many Disney park guests (us included), Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean has been taking people to an underground world since March 18, 1967, opening just a few months after Walt’s passing.  (It is rumored that Walt’s favorite ride was whichever one he was currently working on – so this could be said to be his last favorite).  With the addition of Walt Disney World, another version of this attraction opened in late 1973 in the Magic Kingdom.

There are fans of each park that insist that their favorite is the best.  So with that, we will try to compare the POTC attractions and see if there really is a better version.

Entry into the attraction:  At Disneyland, most of the queue is Continue Reading →

Main Street Electrical Parade Home Again

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Disneyland Main Street Electrical Parade

Like a long lost family member, we waited anxiously for its return.  Then it happened.  With the albeit temporary homecoming, we had an opportunity to experience Disneyland’s Main Street Electrical Parade in its original location, Disneyland.  It has been 21 years since it left this park (although it had a run from 2001 to 2010 on the California Adventure side).

We celebrated Debbie’s birthday with a Main Street Electrical Light Parade Dinner package at the Blue Bayou restaurant which was a full three course meal that included a starter, entrée and dessert.  This is a prix fixe option that includes some of the best menu options (surf & turf, filet mignon, etc) all for one price.  At the end of Continue Reading →

Tour of Disneyland Railroad

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There are many who lament the loss of Big Thunder Ranch and the subsequent shutting down of the Disneyland Railroad, The Mark Twain Riverboat, the Columbia Sailing Ship and Fantasmic while the imagineers and contractors build the new Star Wars Land.  But we found a serendipitous opportunity that would have never come along without these closures – a special up close tour of the Disneyland Railroad.

Disneyland has brought out the locomotives and cars for guests Continue Reading →

Good Bye 60th Anniversary

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They say that all good things must come to and end; and after months of great parties and special events celebrating Disneyland’s 60th anniversary, it all ends tonight, September 5, 2016.  The beautiful lights, shows, fireworks, and the make-over of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle celebrating a once-in-a-lifetime event will all be just a memory.  With that, we must say “Good Bye” to all that we have come to love over the past year.

Sleeping Beauty's Castle - Disneyland. 77 feet tall.

Sleeping Beauty’s Castle dressed for the 60th Anniversary.

Disney sure knows how to throw a shindig!  This magical celebration ran for more than 16 months, beginning on May 22, 2015, crossing into the actual anniversary date of July 17, 2015 and covering the 61st anniversary in July of this year.

The 60th Anniversary overlay of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle had to have been one of the best we have ever seen.  Every fall, the castle is decorated for Christmas, but nothing like this.  If you missed it, unfortunately it is gone forever and you may have to wait until the 75th Anniversary Continue Reading →

Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular

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The new nighttime show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World brings all the stories of Star Wars to life in a display of fireworks, visual projections, sound and columns of fire in a way never before seen – as only Disney can.  This new show, which debuted on June 17, 2016, is the largest fireworks display in the history of Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular now showing at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World.

Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular now showing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World.

Star Wars:  A Galactic Spectacular is best viewed from Hollywood Boulevard; the closer to the Great Movie Ride, the better as there are visual displays projected on the surrounding buildings.  If you are too far back, the side views are blocked by the buildings on Hollywood Boulevard.

Imagery from all current seven Star Wars chapters are blended into this nighttime spectacular, with the show divided into segments depicting the many facets of this good vs evil saga.  The show’s elements are broken into Continue Reading →